Former Perlis mufti Asri Zainul Abidin has come forward to rebut views from other scholars that it is haram (forbidden) to touch dogs.

He says that it is incorrect to say that it is forbidden because a dog is najis (filth), as this would make many professions and daily chores also forbidden.

"If it is haram to touch najis , then it is also haram to touch one’s own excrement or that of children or others in your care when cleaning them.

"It would also be forbidden to do any work which involves najis , like cleaning toilets or dealing with blood or pus (both considered najis ). The same can be said of veterinarians.

"So to rule that (touching dogs) is forbidden is a shallow ruling. It is thus not forbidden to touch dogs," he said in a Facebook posting.

He was responding to the views of other clerics following yesterday’s 'I Want To Touch A Dog' event held in Petaling Jaya to desensitise Malay Muslims towards dogs.

The clerics have opined that it is forbidden to wilfully dirty one’s self by touching najis .

The Islamic Development Department (Jakim) said it will probe organiser Syed Azmi Alhabshi, as the event impinged on Muslim sensitivities.

The event, reportedly given the go-ahead by the Selangor Islamic Affairs Council (Mais), also featured a cleric who demonstrated to attendees how Muslims can cleanse themselves after touching a dog.

Just clean yourself after

Agreeing, Asri said that it is fine for Muslims to touch najis if they clean themselves before performing ritual worship or interacting with others.

He said that all Muslim schools of thought agree that dry dogs are not najis but they are divided about wet dogs.

The Shafee school of thought, which Malaysian Muslims adhere to, is strict about wet dogs being najis but others are more "open and easy" about it, he said.

He added that scholars also differ on whether Muslims can keep dogs as pets, with some viewing it as "discouraged" and not "forbidden".

However, Asri believes this is more because Islam encourages welcoming guests, and some guests might not be keen on dogs due to their smell, barking and fur.

However, he said, Muslims can keep dogs for security reasons and hunting, and animals caught by hunter dogs are halal to eat.

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